dinner reminder recipes

Regular dinner foods:

Stir Fry recipe
hamburgers
sausages
pasta/red sauce/sausage
tacos (ground beef)
chicken thighs in skillet (from Joey)


imjeddrah



Lunch Foods:
avocado toast

Soft Pretzels - Alton Brown

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups warm (110 to 115 degrees F) water

1 tablespoon sugar

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 package active dry yeast

22 ounces all-purpose flour, approximately 4 1/2 cups

2 ounces unsalted butter, melted

Vegetable oil, for pan

10 cups water

2/3 cup baking soda

1 large egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water

Pretzel salt

1. 1. Combine the water, sugar and kosher salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and sprinkle the yeast on top. Allow to sit for 5 minutes or until the mixture begins to foam. Add the flour and butter and, using the dough hook attachment, mix on low speed until well combined. Change to medium speed and knead until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the side of the bowl, approximately 4 to 5 minutes. Remove the dough from the bowl, clean the bowl and then oil it well with vegetable oil. Return the dough to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and sit in a warm place for approximately 50 to 55 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size.
2. 2. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line 2 half-sheet pans with parchment paper and lightly brush with the vegetable oil. Set aside.
3. 3. Bring the 10 cups of water and the baking soda to a rolling boil in an 8-quart saucepan or roasting pan.
4. 4. In the meantime, turn the dough out onto a slightly oiled work surface and divide into 8 equal pieces. Roll out each piece of dough into a 24-inch rope. Make a U-shape with the rope, holding the ends of the rope, cross them over each other and press onto the bottom of the U in order to form the shape of a pretzel. Place onto the parchment-lined half sheet pan.
5. 5. Place the pretzels into the boiling water, 1 by 1, for 30 seconds. Remove them from the water using a large flat spatula. Return to the half sheet pan, brush the top of each pretzel with the beaten egg yolk and water mixture and sprinkle with the pretzel salt. Bake until dark golden brown in color, approximately 12 to 14 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack for at least 5 minutes before serving.

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/homemade-soft-pretzels-recipe-1948242

Hidden Heart Cake

Camille's first birthday cake

Ingredients

Hidden heart:

• 1 15.25-ounce box red velvet cake mix + ingredients to make the cake

White cake:

• 1 115.25-ounce box white cake mix
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter melted
• 4 large eggs at room temperature

Chocolate ganache:

• 3/4 cups chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons heavy cream

Instructions

Hidden heart:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 10- by 15-inch jelly roll pan with cooking spray. Line the pan with parchment paper, then spray the paper with additional cooking spray. Set pan aside.
2. Prepare the red velvet cake mix according to the directions on the box. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake 16 to 20 minutes, until the cake springs back when pressed lightly with your fingertip and a cake tester inserted in to the center of the cake comes out clean.
3. Cool in pan to room temperature, then gently flip the cake out onto a large cutting board to cool completely. Once cake is fully cooled, use a 2-inch heart-shaped cookie cutter to cut out about 25 hearts.
4. Place the hearts on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and freezer for at least 3 hours, or overnight. Leave them in the freezer while you prepare the white cake batter.

White cake:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 10-inch bundt pan with cooking spray and set pan aside.
2. Combine cake mix, milk, butter, and eggs in a large mixing bowl and beat for 2 minutes on medium speed. Pour 1 1/2 cups of batter into the prepared pan. Arrange the frozen hearts on the batter with the top of the hearts facing downward. You’ll probably need to slice the hearts in half to get them to fit neatly around the curve of your pan; pack the hearts in tightly to minimize gaps between them.
3. Carefully pour the remaining white cake batter in the pan over the cutout hearts.
4. Bake 44 to 50 minutes, until a cake tester inserted into the cake comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 30 minutes, then carefully remove the cake to a wire rack to cool completely.

Chocolate ganache:

1. Heat the heavy cream over medium heat until it just begins to steam. Place the chocolate chips in a heatproof bowl and pour the hot cream over it. Let sit for 4 minutes, then whisk until chocolate chips are melted and the mixture is smooth. Drizzle the ganache over the cooled cake and refrigerate the cake to set the ganache. Slice and serve.

Recipe Notes

1. Be sure your heart cookie cutter will fit in your bundt pan.  Remember your white cake batter won’t go all the way to the top of the pan so you want the heart small enough to fit into the pan with plenty of room.
2. You’ll bake the cake you use for the hearts in a jelly roll pan.  This will result in hearts that are fairly thick so don’t forget to slice them in half before you put them in the pan.  This allows them to fit around the pan’s curves better.
3. If you have trouble cutting the hearts out without the cake crumbling, freeze the cake for 30 to 60 minutes; it will firm up and be easier to cut.
4. Pack the hearts into the pan as tightly as you can get them so you don’t have gaps where only white cake is showing.  (If this happens when you slice your cake just shave a little off the sides and the heart should appear.) 

https://itsybitsykitchen.com/hidden-heart-valentines-day-cake/

Mustard Vinaigrette (Pantry)

Mustard Vinaigrette (from the Pantry)

1x (8 servings)
6 TBSP olive oil
1 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar
4 1/2 tsp white wine vinegar
2 TBSP dijon
salt to taste

Combine vinegars and mustard in large bowl. Slowly whisk in oil. Add salt to taste.

Goes great lightly dressed on arugula.

Pomegranate Pear Green Salad with Ginger Dressing

https://cookieandkate.com/pomegranate-pear-green-salad-with-ginger-dressing/

Pomegranate & Pear Green Salad with Ginger 

Salad

• ½ cup raw pecans (halves or pieces)
• 5 ounces baby arugula
• 2 ounces (about ½ cup) goat cheese or feta, crumbled
• 1 large ripe Bartlett pear, thinly sliced
• 1 Honeycrisp or Gala apple, thinly sliced
• Arils from 1 pomegranate

Ginger dressing

• ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar, to taste
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup or honey
• 1 teaspoon finely grated fresh ginger
• ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
• About 10 twists of freshly ground black pepper

INSTRUCTIONS

1. To toast the pecans, place them in a skillet over medium heat. Toast, stirring often, until they’re fragrant and starting to turn golden on the edges, about 4 to 5 minutes. Remove the pecans from the heat and roughly chop them (no need to chop if you started with pecan pieces). Set aside.
2. Arrange the arugula across a large serving platter (or bowl, but the salad looks prettiest on a platter). Sprinkle the chopped pecans and crumbled goat cheese over the arugula. Fan out your slices of pear and apple and arrange them across the salad in sections (see photos). Sprinkle all over with fresh pomegranate arils.
3. To prepare the dressing, combine all of the ingredients and whisk until blended. Taste, and if it isn’t quite zippy enough, add another teaspoon of vinegar.
4. Wait to dress the salad until you’re ready to serve (the dressing will wilt the greens over time). When you’re ready, drizzle the ginger dressing lightly all over the salad (you might not need all of it). Serve promptly.

Royal Icing (Decorate Christmas cookies)

HOW TO DECORATE COOKIES WITH ROYAL ICING

• Category: Dessert

INGREDIENTS

• 3 tbsp meringue powder
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 6-8 tbsp water

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Combine meringue powder and powdered sugar in the bowl of a mixer.
2. Add 6-7 tablespoons of water and mix with whisk attachment at medium speed for about 7-10 minutes, or until icing looses it’s sheen. Begin with 6 tablespoons and add up to an addition tablespoon if needed to get the icing smooth for mixing.
3. Once icing is ready, add additional water to get the right consistency for piping. See notes and video above for guidance on consistency, coloring and piping.

Lulus notes:

I needed more water then expected to be able to pipe out comfortable from a bottle- possibly an extra 1 tablespoon total after the 7 tablespoons.

https://www.lifeloveandsugar.com/2015/12/07/how-to-decorate-cookies-royal-icing/

Creamy Parmesan Garlic Mushroom Chicken

https://therecipecritic.com/2016/06/creamy-parmesan-garlic-mushroom-chicken/